This is the best price/value ratio you can find in digital night vision. At ranges under 50 yards with average amounts of ambient light, the NVG50 is competitive with the PVS14 or similar analog devices. At night with a half moon, I could detect a person in the open at least 250 yards distant. In low-light conditions outdoors (no moon, under trees) the NVG50's will become grainy beyond 50 yards without IR illumination.
The built-in IR illuminator provides flood illumination as opposed to spot illumination. It will provide useful illumination out to about 75 yards. If you are using this device at longer range, it is advantageous to pair it with an IR flashlight. This combination got me good visual clarity out to 200 yards, but this will depend on the quality of your IR light.
The image quality at close range in extreme low light conditions (in a dark basement) >WITH IR< is excellent. The "flood" illumination is an advantage in this scenario, as it washes your entire field of view without causing a bright glare on surfaces directly in front of you. Without IR, the image quality in extreme low light conditions will suffer, becoming grainy to the point of unusable. However, this is simply to be expected with digital night vision in this price range. The NVG50 is in no way worse in this category than similar devices.
A common complaint against digital night vision is latency. The latency really only becomes noticeable if you are running or swinging your head rapidly. In my opinion, the latency is very manageable, especially with some practice. Setting the device to 40FPS improves this noticeably.
The NVG50 has 4X digital zoom, but in my opinion this feature is only marginally useful UNLESS you pair it with a high quality IR spotlight.
The NVG50 can record video and audio. The video is whatever you see on the screen, the audio is decent. Whatever is happening directly around you will be recorded with good clarity, but sound at distance tends to wash out. But this device will allow you to record what you are seeing for sport or security purposes, which is not something analog night vision will allow.
Bottom line, you can't beat the performance for the price. PVS14's or similar analog devices are four times the money. I would say the NVG50 gives you 70% the capacity of a PVS14 at 25% the cost.
5/5, would recommend.
Outstanding product and service. Fast shipping, packaged well, and perfectly configured.
This is a great device personally I like the white phosphor better than the green.I highly recommend this I also got the battery pack also good for long night hiking.
Came in perfect condition, works perfectly.
Best bang for buck digital night vision. I can now be batman at night
The product claims to take cr123a batteries in the description but those batteries do not fit in the housing. I have no idea what batteries are compatible with this model.
Pleased with the products, good communication during holiday rush, and good packaging. Only criticism is no instruction manual or guidance in packing on how to assemble or operate products. Not a big deal as everything was pretty intuitive, but for price it should come with something.
I recently purchased a NVG30 night viewing device from Goodnitegear. I’m satisfied with the purchase of the equipment especially the reduced price during a Black Friday Special. Sometimes after a buying items people have questions and or requests from the sellers. That’s when customer service becomes so important. With many sellers, third-party sellers and foreign sellers, customer service is nonexistent.
As it turned out, I did have a request after my purchase and the customer service at Good Nite Gear was excellent. Truly the best customer service I have ever experienced. A quick and courteous response with follow-up support. This company has their act together when it comes to product and service. I highly recommend Good Nite Gear because of their product in addition with their outstanding customer service.
Absolutely amazing can be used for hunting and real steel shooting
This lens dramatically enhances - not only the field of view, but the light gathering capability of the NVG-30. I do however wish, the focusing was not so easy to manipulate. Be very careful not to over-install the mounting ring and that it’s lined up properly. This is a must-have for the NVG-30 and variants. Service of course from Goodnight Gear, was excellent.
just received my nvg 40s, and I gotta say I love them! they are super clear, and the ir illuminator does the job perfectly! by far worth the price!
that said, the reason for 4 stars and not five, are over three minor issues.
firstly, the package came with no assembly instructions for the mounting arm (had to figure that one out myself, even though it wasn't that hard after looking at the peices).
second, the buttons began to stick a bit after a while (no biggie, just a little wiggling and they were back to normal.)
and thirdly, (this is a manufacturing defect on the part of the helmet makers) the mounting bracket is just ever so slightly too small to fit the mounting arm.
all that said, I still ABSOLUTELY love the product. you guys did a wonderful job making night vision affordable for the average Joe like me.
I recently purchased the NVG30 from GoodNiteGear along with the wide angle lens and the “1 size fits all helmet.” I spent my own money on this and will not be receiving any consideration for the review. I have it set up as a monocular (I can’t afford two right now).
* Mine arrived with everything that was supposed to be included, in new condition, working correctly. Shipping and communication from the seller was flawless.
* The videos on this site and elsewhere accurately describe the unit’s strengths and weaknesses.
* With just a little bit of ambient light, I can see far, far father and with more clarity than with my un-monocular’d eye.
* With zero ambient light, a source of IR illumination is needed to see — my experience matches exactly what I was led to expect by the videos.
* I was privileged to try my friend’s dual PVS-14 setup about a year ago. The comparison videos I’ve seen between the two give what I consider to be an accurate showing of how they compare. If I could afford dual PVS-14s, I would be ecstatic.
* The wide angle lens is a useful upgrade, especially for the price, if you plan to move while wearing this.
* Note that when using the built-in illuminator with the wide angle lens, you’ll see a shadow — it’s slightly annoying.
* I did not test at 30FPS. At 40FPS, I was comfortable moving around with the NVG30. I did not try to move quickly, I’d be reluctant to try to run with these on, due to field of view. Younger, fitter people with two of these could probably move and fight reasonably quickly and effectively.
* My handgun’s night sights are clearly visible through the monocular, and while I did not try I believe I could shoot with it that way.
* As expected, I will need an IR designator to make this work with a rifle.
* Getting the helmet and mount adjusted correctly is vital to making this work well enough to do anything. As a newbie to night vision, I had to learn that the hard way.
* The user interface is a bit clunky, but again accurately described in the videos I’ve seen.
A few notes on the helmet:
* The “1 size fits all” helmet here is an inexpensive mount for the monocular, not an actual piece of protective equipment. At the price, I’m good with it.
* It’s pretty big. Those with smaller heads may want to look elsewhere. I have an unusually large head (I have problems finding hats that fit) and this fits me very well.
* Adjusting the helmet to fit correctly is super important to seeing reasonably well..
Great quality. Awesome entry level/beginner digital night vision device !!.. im definitely getting a second to complete the bino setup.
I got mine some late last year . So it’s been just about a year of owning. I see they dropped the price a good amount haha! But, this thing is awesome. I swear from the best of my memory it’s on par with the PVS-14 I got to use in the Marine Corps. Minus the obvious IR light signature. ( which I’m pretty? Sure you can turn off). Anyhow, this NV is super fun to mess with. I’ve dropped it once accidentally from a decent height, and it took the impact like a tank. The only con I think is the swivel mount. Just needs some ingenuity really not a big deal. The bracket fits super nice in the old school ratchet mount I’ve got on my LWH. Definitely a great buy! Customer service is on point too!
Always looking for deals and they are always dependable to work with
For a cheaper monocular, this thing is legit. While I don’t love the polymer mount, if you’re not beat the heck out of it, it’ll be fine. The bulk is a little much but the low weight makes it even out. I definitely don’t feel like I need a counter weight on my Team Wendy.
Overall, I highly recommend for a budget-friendly monocular or first set of NVGs.
Durable unit overall. Dovetails hold very securely. Each side has a wide range of adjustment, and each bracket is removable which makes for a highly customizable setup in a streamlined package. I would definitely recommend, and I would purchase this again myself if ever needed.
Works great and better than other 3rd party mounting arms to secure nvg30s to a wilcox mount that me and my friends have used. Easy to use as well.
If you use your NVG10 or 30 as a handheld night vision device then these are perfect as they pretty much double your fov from my experience with it. However can be bulky if you use it on a helmet mounted device.
Fits and functions but they should've put screw holes in all 4 corners of the mounting plate
As it stands, you can only secure the front or back of the plate. This makes it possible to inadvertently pry the mounting plate / shear off the screws when raising / lowering the NVG
Incredibly affordable but just okay performance. Otherwise, seems to be reliable and a solid entry point to the laser aiming module market, a good choice for $300.
So I mounted this product to my Wilcox mount and aside from the slight wobble of the part that clips into the Wilcox it's really not noticeable. Sturdy but add some lock tight to the screws and you are solid.